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February 16, 2017

Europa League 2016/17 - Round of 32 - Referee Appointments (I)

These are the referees appointed by UEFA for EL Round of 32 (First Leg). Among others, Dutch Category 1 Danny Makkelie will officiate the clash between Villarreal and Roma, while Spanish Jesús Gil Manzano will be in charge of Borussia Mönchengladbach - Fiorentina.

Moen with a new AR, as it was reported on the blog and with a committee member.Several Elite referees have been appointed: among others, I would say that Atkinson in Israel is a choice following Beşiktaş elimination from CL, the Turkish side will very likely get an Elite official in second leg as well. Eriksson is already out to recover the pitch after winter break. I would say standard appointments for appointments for Nijhuis and Fernández Borbalán.Královec one year ago was officiating Roma - Real Madrid, this time he gets Europa League. I think he will have to convince the committee again, in order to get Champions League. Bastien, Gil Manzano and Makkelie on the spotlights... Oliver as well.

How are things looking for Michael Oliver in terms of this appointment?? @ChefrenOliver has Clattenburg's ARs assisting him!! Also interesting that Robert Madley is back as an AAR after his horror night at PSV Eindhoven v Atlético Madrid while he was appointed with Atkinson!!

Most of the Elite referees appointed in this set will probably stay without CL for the rest of the season. I think for Eriksson this can be seen as a "warm-up", I expect him in a CL 2nd leg. IMO the chances of an CL appointment this season are <50% for the others, while I would give Atkinson the highest percentage between them.

No real surprises in the selection of first group referees. More surprising is the distribution of matches between Elite and First group.

Well, it was just in front of AAR1 Del Cerro Grande, but also Gil Manzano should see it, he was close enough and have clear line to see it (e.g. Gibbs potential handball last night is full responsibility of AAR1 Grujic, but it was totally different situation). This was clear penalty, and this mistake influenced final result of the game. RC or YC?

I respect your opinions but honestly, I see that the attacker kicsk the ball (shoot on goal) and later there is a contact, and it doesn't have any influence on the final action. Not penalty in my humble opinion

The fact that the ball was already played shouldn't matter. This is a wrong assumption. A player can be fouled even without the possession of the ball. This argument is relevant in selecting the disciplinary measure.

Gent - Tottenham: so far not a demanding game for Bastien, however the 1-0 scored by Belgian team can be interesting in terms of offside. There was a player on the line jumping to avoid the contact with the ball. Correct decision to allow the goal, as his movement didn't influence any opponent, well seen by AR2. A few years ago, we could have said that goal had to be disallowed just because player jumped...

Easy game for Estrada, good control and alert decision-taking - unfortunately with 2 exceptions. As described above, for me a missed penalty in 4' (attacker entered the penalty area from the left side and was elbowed by the defender, touch in the face). Apart from that, missed clear yellow card for SPA close to AR1 in 38' (Crespo PAOK vs Goretzka S04).

Why the hell is there no Goalline Technology in Europa League? Warsaw even had it in the CL group stage :/

Maybe Clos' head is a bit too much inside the field of play (a screenshot from the goalline height could clarify that). But even with a correct head position it is doubtful whether he can see the ball at all.

Difficult for AAR1, but where he was watching? He should be watching from other side of the post to detect whether the ball crossed the line. Looking from that side he could hardly see the ball inside the goal even if it was visible.

FC Rostov vs Sparta Praha. Min. 32: Ref Nijhuis was showing a 2nd yellow card for Konaté (SPP) after a very ugly tackle on the ankle of Kalachev (RST). The foot of Kalachev turned 90° following the impact of Konaté's tackle. IMO obvious SFP which deserved a red card instead of 2nd yellow.

Don't you think that refs often miss this kind of tackles - open foot on the ankle? It happens to the best refs as well, from time to time. Probably it is difficult to detect them in real time, and on camera it looks terrible.

I didn't watch the kick by Martial and the other incident.The penalty is surely a soft decision and Ibrahimovic made it really more than it was.I'm now convinced that penalty in first half for St Etienne had to be given.

Bebek forgot that the player was already booked, very likely he was informed by another official, that shouldn't happen, however at the end the correct decision was taken. Many referees would have avoided this YC, but we know Bebek is very strict in terms of protests and time wasting.

Well,I think he wanted free kick to be taken quickly because end of the match was coming and to focus on what was happening in penalty area,so he got a little bit distracted with his card procedure and realizing that was player's 2nd yc.

To be honest I don't think that a 2nd YC was needed at all here. Was the re-start of play delayed? Not really, the ball was close. I simply believe the referee should not have made a big deal out of this situation and simply add some more seconds on top. Absolutely evitable card, for my taste.

And the Oscar goes to... Zlatan Ibrahimovic! Who else? 3 goals and two brilliant dives, prior first and third goal. Hollywood actors may envy him.In 20' penalty I think, bur AAR2 had much better position and should see the foul.

46' Uhhh, from the camera behind the goal it looked like real knockout. From other angles it doesn't look like that. Borderline, but I don't see clear intention from Martial to use his elbow or rather arm as a weapon. But he punched him pretty strong.66' very dangerous play. Cakir wouldn't miss to give red card here (remember Nani's case and his exclusion). But, refs often goes with YCs in those kind of incidents.87' Soooft call. But Ibra's acting - brilliant. For me, this is more YC for simulation.

14': definitely nothing, mistake, then unluckily United scored thank to that free kick.20': for me penalty, but not easy to detect.46': indeed a replay seems to show that this was a deliberate act, however the first impression I had was that it was reckless, but there are chances to consider it as (deliberate) VC, RC wouldn't have been a mistake.66': Surely a RC, if you manage to hit the leg of an opponent when he has already his leg raised, this is more than reckless... AR2 perfectly positioned in order to suggest a RC. 87': soft penalty, if not wrong.Ibrahimovic deceived the referee in at least two occasions in this game. I'm sorry because everything went against St Etienne, and there were some crucial moments in which French team could have scored a goal, the game ended 3-0 but it was very particular in its progress.Two disallowed goals were however correct decisions.

4': Clear penalty and at least YC, I think referee missed the first contact and then he punished the subsequent pushing by attacker.37': Such a challenge must be punished by YC, it was also reckless.50': It seems a harsh decision.56': RC for PAOK player, clear VC.63': Strange mistake, the player from PAOK was clearly visible for AR2. 72': In my opinion YC.

4' Penalty + YC37' YC for SPA50' blatantly missed corner, YC is a product of that56' for me both YCs are ok. The kick by the PAOK player was retaliation, but without excessive force. And this is required for a violent conduct. UEFA RAPs suggest a yellow card. And in such situations it is clever to caution 1 player of each team, even though here the Schalke player actually did not make a lot63' small blackout72' missed clear 2nd YC, also visible for the 4th official

67: seems to be VC, not easy to spot, maybe the 4th official could have helped71: In real time: SPA, if you stop the video at the moment of the foul: DOGSO84: Harsh decision: both players are holding, and the attack wasn't clearly promising

08' as discussed difficult to see67' could be violent conduct, maybe the force was not high enough. But minimum YC. Comparable to Cameroon-Croatia (WC 2014), where the force was however higher71' I agree.. Video refereeing it is DOGSO. SPA understandable and accepted.84' Incorrect for me. 1) Both players are pulling, in doubt the attacker even more than the defender. 2) A promising attack was IMO not given, 3) the pulling was no reason to fall like that.

Regarding the Elite officials, it seems Borbalan, Kralovec and Nijhuis at least did not have a faultless match, so their (already) small chances for a CL match are probably gone.No comments so far on Atkinson, Eriksson and Moen, so presumably at least no big errors. While it appears unlikely for the Norwegian, the other two should have good chances now for a CL 2nd leg (Atkinson also due to Clattenburg's retirement). I guess, one of them will get the match in Napoli.

I checked a live coverage of Athletic - APOEL and everything looked to be OK, no major incident apart from the yellow cards. Difficult to find something about Atkinson's performance.Moen ended his game without any yellow card. This can be something positive, but at the same time, knowing him, I wouldn't be sure... However, I agree with you. We can expect Eriksson and Atkinson in Champions League, while the other ones should be out.

Second leg appointments are made before the first leg. However, you might be right regarding the experienced Elite referee, as Victor Mintoff is a rather unknown observer. I could imagine Rocchi there.

Philipp is right. Since EL round of 32 is played in a week, appointments for both first leg and second leg have been made together. I remember one year ago Tagliavento assigned to a clash ended 5-0 in first leg.I don't think that committee has paid special attention to a game like Olympiacos - Osmanlispor, and I say that with all the respect of course.

Yeah I remember that game when Tagliavento was appointed to Rapid Wien v Valencia last year when Valencia had a 6–0 lead after the 1st leg... With all due respect to both teams, I definitely agree that an Osmanlispor v Olympiacos game might not be too much under the committee's radar!!! But an Elite referee could've been given it as a warm-up before CL games considering Ruddy Buquet had a very challenging night yesterday in the 1st leg... But then the appointments are already made so more likely that it will be a trusted category 1 referee like Matej Jug, Felix Zwayer or maybe Martin Strombergsson considering the fact it was Buquet in the 1st leg!!!

I can add, I watched most of Krasnodar - Fenerbahçe yesterday,it looked like an expected level performance by Kruzliak. Nothing special to be mentioned, a very good attitude to wait before whistling a foul, to check a possible advantage. Game was mostly played in a calm context.

Overall I agree with Chefren, but I did notice some interesting situations in the Krasnodar - Fenerbahce match.Most of all I have some problems with Kruzliak's dealing with the tackle in the 2' minute. For me an obvious YC for a reckless tackle at least.In the second clip Podberezki kicks his opponent, but no brutality or excessive force used, so correctly solved considering UEFA's guidelines regarding violent conduct.

I agree with you. 2' is clearly reckless and closer to orange than to no card. Low studs, moderate intensity. A perfect moment to set a roadblock and make clear that such tackles won't be tolerated. On a higher level, one could say that future tackles of a comparable severity could have been avoided by that..42' Reckless kicking, correct caution.63' Borderline.. not far away from red, but I think as the contact was not made with the studs fully, it is still acceptable to deem it as reckless.77' Although replays are not 100% clear in terms of the contact location, I tend to a yellow card for a reckless tackle here as well.

2': reckless tackle, mandatory YC, I didn't watch it live, I appreciate the awareness by Kruzliak with a quick whistle and the warning issued, but definitely not enough, for me clear YC.42': correct YC, well seen, indeed it was reckless.63': bordeline, but I think that YC is still OK, the reasons are the ones mentioned by Niclas.77': can be YC but in my opinion not a mandatory one.

I agree Chefren, it is good to see that Moen has maybe analyzed the weaknesses of his past performances and turned more authoritative in his body language and communication. This was very much needed, as I remember a mostly smiling Norwegian even after dangerous tackles..

Chefren, I was thinking about the possibility of Michael Oliver being given a CL Round of 16 clash?? I remember when Björn Kuipers made his CL group stage debut during the 2009-10 season he was appointed to the Stuttgart v Barcelona Round of 16 clash in his very first season!! So will it be a wise thing to do something similar with Oliver as well??

Definitely too early, I agree with you... But considering what was done with Kuipers I thought maybe they can think of doing something similar with Oliver... But then 1 point that I forgot is that Kuipers was Elite in 2009 whereas Oliver isn't Elite yet so that's the major difference I missed out!!

Yes, he is still Category 1, this wouldn't be however a real problem, in past we had some officials appointed for CL KO stage when they were not still Elite (Karasev, Real Madrid - Schalke 04 2013), but it was surely something extra-ordinary.The 1985-born needs still time.

Sooner or later that has to be the case... It's crystal clear that Oliver is the future of English refereeing so he needs to be tested with big appointments from now on... For an official who regularly handles Man Utd v Liverpool, London derbies, Manchester derbies etc brilliantly more often than not, it shouldn't be too difficult to grab opportunities in sonorous EL games when his time comes!!

Yeah basically I do agree, a lot younger and at the same (if not better) level than Taylor. Anyway I would only say maybe he has to work on a slightly more sociable approach (especially being English, Dean showed UEFA can find referees of this style elsewhere), and maybe have a slightly more down to earth demeanour in the middle (as Webb perfected imo), but it is clear the players trust him in the pitch. Of course there are still many more years to develop!

I don't see any problems with his approach and demeanor... The man is pure class... It's only about gaining more experience in big games and establishing himself as a safe pair of hands in the UEFA circuit!! 🙂

Riem Hussein and Bibiana Steinhaus will referee at the Women's EURO this year. Christina Biehl and Katrin Rafalski will be assistant referees.I couldn't find the complete list, but I assume it will be published soon.

OT: FIFA U-20 World Cup will be played in India in period 20 May - 11 June. I guess at least six prospective referees from Europe will be there. They will all be out of CL and EL final which are played in that period. Maybe they will even be out of semis but i doubt that because they are played early in May. So, when FIFA publishes list for India we will know who probably won't see CL or EL finals this year. Good thing is that Collina is now in FIFA and UEFA both, so he will probably know who shoud go in India and who shoud stay. Based on what i wrote, I guess we will have in India referees who had CL or EL finals and some referees not considered for finals this year.

It is in South Korea not India. But you have a good point there. As FIFA probably wants to see all pre-selected referees in a tournament in 2016/17, I could imagine something like:ConfedCup: Cakir, Eriksson, Kassai, MazicU20: Karasev, Kralovec, Kuipers, Moen, Rocchi, SidiropolousU17: Brych, Collum, Marciniak, Orsato, Skomina, Soares Dias(Hategan, Mateu, Turpin were at the Olympics)

I'll swap Kassai with Marciniak... Also do we really need Kuipers in U20 and Brych in U17?? I expect Kuipers in Confed Cup just like Webb who was there in 2009 as well as 2013 and same applies for Brych... Eriksson is way to inconsistent this season and shouldn't be going for Confed Cup... Brych, Kuipers, Marciniak and Mazic/Skomina would be my choices for the Confederations Cup!!

Gözöbüyük is appointed for EURO2017 u21. His assistants will be Van Dongen en Van Zuilen (new FIFA), his 5th and 6th official Higler (new FIFA) and Manschot (junior referee).

Espcially Manschot is remarkable: at the moment he isn't a senior referee in the Netherlands. Looking back at EURO2015, only FIFA referees were appointed (except Kamphuis), this time even a junior referee is appointed. Good apointment for him and a good appointment too for Gözöbüyük.

A question for you, Rik B. What is the difference between Senior and Junior referee in the Netherlands, given the fact that both categories officiate in the top divsion? And this is the only important thing for getting the FIFA badge.

The 'senior' referees are regular top division referees. They usuaully officiate only top division matches, with some exceptions to lower levels. Junior referees are supposed to take charge of 2nd division matches.

However, we have quite a difficult situation in the Netherlands. 4 senior referees (Pieter Vink, Eric Braamhaar, Reinold Wiedemeijer, Tom van Sichem) are still 'senior referees' but didn't take charges of matches for months / years. That means, that there is no possibility for promotion for the junior referees.

However, it also means that there are not enough referees. That means that the junior referees are given quite a lot of topdivision matches: there are simply no others at the moment. Espcially Manschot en Mulder are treated as 50/50 senior referees, for as far as I can see it. Somewhere close behind them we have V/d Graaf and Lindhout, and behind that Bax, who has officiated two matches now.

So the difference is in the number of topdivision matches they get, even though that difference is smaller than it should be at the moment, due to the reasons I explained above.

Since there is no NED at U21 Gozoboyuk was expected. Since there are 12 teams and considered the teams playing, referees who already did euro21 and who are 'too old' there are no to much options. My guess are: Buquet/Bastien, Zelinka, Kovacs, Madden, Delferiere, Lechner, Kehlet. Maybe even second cat referees like Aghayev, Grinfeeld, Treimanis, Tohver...

He has not. The question is, whether UEFA chooses referees from participating countries. I think it is possible this year with the increased number of teams. Therefore Oliver (or Taylor?) should have good chances, as well as Strömergsson and Zwayer. Furthermore I would expect Buquet, Kulbakov, Mazeika, Vincic, who all had CL this season. Gil Manzano, Kruzliak, Raczkowski are also well possible.